Mark Tuan Gets Introspective, Returns to Rapping on Long-Awaited ‘The Other Side’ Album

After first entering the music scene in 2014 with his K-pop boy band GOT7, Mark Tuan has finally released his first full solo project with his introspective album The Other Side.

While Mark was one of the designated rappers in GOT7, the Los Angeles native gets the chance to showcase his true range across the 20-song project. Tuan boasts songwriting and composition credits across every track with most songs spotlighting Mark’s singing abilities front and center. While five vocal-focused singles previewed the album through the past nine months — “last breath,” “my life,” “lonely,” “save me,” and “imysm” — The Other Side also sees Mark return to the rap tracks fans first heard during his time with GOT7 on braggadocio-heavy cuts like “my name” and LP standout “change up.”

Beyond musical elements, the most striking part of The Other Side is the raw introspections the star shares. Through his lyrics, he explores the topics of self-doubt (“hard 2 love”), toxic friendships (“exhausted”), unfaithfulness (“broken”) and the pressure to be perfect (“only human”). The album’s straightforward, lo-fi production also better shines the light on these challenging topics.

While not explicitly clear, Mark also describes what appear to be all-too-relatable mental health struggles like when he sings, “I sink down way into the floor/ You pull me up, but I’m too far…I’ve never been this low” on “at my low.” Another striking lyric comes in “I’ll just get f-cked up instead, it’s easier this way/ I found a way to escape the evil thoughts inside my head” on “lonely.”

The Other Side was released along with the music video for album closer “far away,” a kiss-off track where Mark finally rids himself of a toxic lover. The song is told through a melancholy music video, reminiscing back at the tender moments and photographs from the relationship: “I gave you one last chance, and you f-cked it up/ Now you’re far away / And I hope, that you know, that it’s where you’ll stay.”

While The Other Side is entirely a project created and crafted by Mark and his DNA Official team, GOT7 is also showing support. Fellow GOT7 member BamBam shared a photo of his signed copy of The Other Side, writing, “me and IGOT7s will always support what you do bro,” referencing the group’s devoted fanbase.

Watch “far away” music video below:

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Bandcamp Fridays to Return in September

Bandcamp Fridays are making a return.

The popular monthly promotion, during which the platform waives its usual revenue share and gives all proceeds straight to artists and labels, is making a comeback on September 2 after a several-month hiatus following the company’s acquisition by Epic Games in March. Historically, Bandcamp Fridays have taken place on the first Friday of every month, and, according to a blog post from Bandcamp co-founder and CEO Ethan Diamond, the promotion will resume this fall. In addition to the September date, Bandcamp Fridays are scheduled for October 7, November 4 and December 2.

Since launching Bandcamp Fridays, the company claims the promotion has ceded more than $78 million from over 800,000 fans to artists and their teams over a total of 21 days. On promotion days, artists receive 93% of the money from the sale of their merchandise or music after payment processor fees, as opposed to the usual 82%.

Bandcamp has long been lauded as a haven for independent artists and was seen as an especially valuable partner during the onset of the pandemic, when many artists struggled to make ends meet without touring revenue. Some fans of the platform were shocked when news arrived that the popular independent music marketplace was selling to Epic Games, the gaming and virtual reality behemoth behind Unreal Engine, Fortnite and more.

In a statement at the time of the acquisition, Epic Games said that Bandcamp would “play an important role in Epic’s vision to build out a creator marketplace ecosystem for content, technology, games, art, music and more,” but Diamond clarified in a blog post that the company’s “artist-first” revenue model would remain in place, along with Bandcamp Fridays.

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NCT 127 Set 2 U.S. Dates in World Tour: Is Your City One of the Lucky Stops?

After months of speculation, NCT 127 is finally making their post-pandemic return to the U.S. this year for two dates in their ongoing world tour.

The K-pop boy band announced plans to play shows on both coasts in the U.S. this year. First up, hitting Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena on Oct. 6, followed by an Oct. 13 concert at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.

The two dates come as part of NCT 127’s “The Link” world tour, first announced in November 2021 and officially kicking off with a three-date run in the Seoul Sky Dome. The trek has also visited Tokyo, Singapore and Manila with a press release sharing that Latin American dates will be announced soon.

The timing of the shows comes just after the Sept. 15 release of NCT 127’s upcoming album 2 Baddies, which the group announced and began teasing with new visuals and videos earlier this month. 2 Baddies follows up NCT 127’s Sticker album from 2021 that peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and spent 17 weeks on the chart.

While speaking about his first solo single “Forever Only” released earlier this month, NCT 127 member Jaehyun also gave Billboard some insight into the upcoming LP, its accompanying dance elements and forthcoming tour dates. “The style of choreography this time is kind of free; where you can express more of your own dancing style,” he said in the interview. “It was really fun to do the choreography…hopefully we’ll have a chance to meet our fans all around the world.”

Tickets go on sale Monday at 3 p.m. local time via Ticketmaster.

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NBA player Taurean Prince arrested at MIA on a warrant from Texas

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Another property insurer exiting Florida’s troubled market

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Alabama inmate says state lost form naming execution method

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California Gov. Gavin Newsom pledges $100,000 to unseat Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis

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Quavo Set to Star in Action Thriller ‘Takeover’

Quavo is hitting the big screen! The Migos rapper will star in an upcoming action thriller film called Takeover alongside Titanic actor Billy Zane.

The rapper will star as Guy Miller, a former criminal in Atlanta, Georgia, who’s in the process of trying to get his life back on track. However, his redemption story becomes derailed when illicit opportunities drag him back into the street racing scene. Zane, meanwhile, will Gamal Akopyan, the leader of an international heist ring, according to Variety.

The action-packed film will be set in Atlanta and will be handled by Trioscope and Quality Films, the film division of Quality Control. Takeover is written by Jeb Stuart. It is directed by Trioscope chief creative officer Greg Jonkajtys. “I’m really excited for this opportunity, especially shooting in my hometown of Atlanta,” Quavo previously said of the role to Complex in a statement. “This film is an ideal opportunity to further delve into my craft, and I can’t wait to see how the action plays out in this animated environment.”

As a member of Migos, Quavo released solo studio albums that peaked in the top 5 of the Billboard 200. As a trio, Migos has earned a pair of No. 1 albums on the Billboard 200, and four top 10 hits on the Hot 100 including the Lil Uzi Vert-assisted No. 1 single “Bad and Boujee.”

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Elton John Hopes ‘Hold Me Closer’ Duet Gives Britney Spears a New Boost of Musical ‘Confidence’

Ahead of the release of his “Hold Me Closer” duet with Britney Spears, Elton John did an interview with The Guardian about how the team-up came together and why it’s important to him to support Spears after she broke free of her conservatorship.

First off, John revealed that it was his husband, David Furnish, who had the initial idea to collaborate with Spears. The pair had been talking about the idea of making another patchwork song in the vein of his top 10 Billboard Hot 100 hit “Cold Heart” with Dua Lipa, which includes lyrics from four his classic songs stitched together. Furnish said “it would be wonderful for Britney Spears to do it,” John recalls to The Guardian. “I said, ‘That’s a pretty amazing idea.’ She hadn’t done anything for so long. I’d been following what’s been happening to her for a long time.”

Spears stepped away from music and performing back in 2019, which prompted her concerned supporters to start the #FreeBritney movement, demanding that the conservatorship that had controlled her personal and professional lives for a decade-plus be ended.

“You forget she was the biggest star in the whole world at that time,” John says. “And to see what happened to her makes me so angry. What happened to her shouldn’t have happened to anybody.”

Spears hit the studio with Grammy-winning producer Watt to record new vocals for the duet, which includes lyrics from John’s “Tiny Dancer” and “The One.” John tells The Guardian that his team got Spears’ stamp of approval on the final product. “She’s been away so long – there’s a lot of fear there because she’s been betrayed so many times and she hasn’t really been in the public eye officially for so long,” he says. “We’ve been holding her hand through the whole process, reassuring her that everything’s gonna be all right.” For his part, Watt says of Spears, “She really pushed herself, vocally. Sometimes when you produce, the greatest thing in the world you can do is say nothing, so I just let her do her thing. She’s so good at knowing when she got the right take. She took complete control.”

John hopes “Hold Me Closer” is another chart success story, just like “Cold Heart” before it, so Spears can feel the love from pop fans. “I’m so excited to be able to do it with her because if it is a big hit, and I think it may be, it will give her so much more confidence than she’s got already and she will realize that people actually love her and care for her and want her to be happy,” John says. “That’s all anybody in their right mind would want after she went through such a traumatic time.”

Read the full interview with John — in which he also says, “Britney was broken. I was broken when I got sober. I was in a terrible place. I’ve been through that broken feeling and it’s horrible” — on The Guardian now. “Hold Me Closer” is out at midnight ET.

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APOKI Talks the Appeal of Virtual Artists, Doja Cat’s Influence & New Collab With E-40: Interview

APOKI, the virtual K-pop artist from South Korea, recently released her new single, “West Swing,” featuring E-40. Her fourth single, this marks her first song that’s entirely in English. It’s a song aimed squarely at the global music scene, with the feel of new jack swing, the genre that was so popular in the late ’80s and early ’90s. It also features legendary rapper E-40, who has been active in the scene since the 1990s.

The APOKI project is backed by a collaboration between AFUN INTERACTIVE, a Korean tech venture company, and Sony Music Solutions. CEO DK Kwon of AFUN INTERACTIVE, which has won countless awards for its cutting edge technologies, expressed his hopes for the collaboration, saying, “The Sony Group isn’t just a manufacturer of state-of-the-art, reliable electronics products, but also a Group with immense strengths around the globe in every area of content, such as music, games, and pictures.” He went on, “At AFUN INTERACTIVE, we’re pioneering the new genre of virtual entertainment, so we look forward to seeing the various kinds of synergy we will produce with Sony. We’re grateful to Sony for its dependability and the hard work it’s contributing to the creation of this new market, and we’re doing our part by providing high quality content and new technologies.” You can catch glimpses of homages to Sony in the recently released music video for “West Swing feat. E-40”.

APOKI debuted in February 2021 with “GET IT OUT.” She rapidly raised her profile in South Korea, Japan and around the world. Billboard Japan talked to her about “West Swing feat. E-40,” the virtual artist concept, and her vision for the future.

For any readers that don’t know, APOKI, you’re a rabbit that lives somewhere in space, and you debuted as a virtual artist in 2019. How has this time as a virtual artist been for you?

It’s been an absolute blast getting so many comments from my many fans around the world and having so many people watch my streaming shows. That said, my debut has been called “the birth of an intergalactic star,” so I want to make even more of a splash (laughs) and I plan to release even more songs.

One of the things that makes you so appealing is the diversity of your musical sensibilities, which feature elements of trap and electro.

We decide on a concept for each song and then build up the details from there. I also actively offer up ideas. In addition to input about the music itself, I also make suggestions about, for example, my hair style, clothes, and music videos. Not all of my ideas are used, but on the other hand it’s not like my team forces me to do everything their way, either. We’re professionals, so we bounce ideas off each other through the creation process.

What are your own musical roots?

What got me into making music was K-POP, but then I started listening to a lot of different music and learning about different artists. I’m really into Doja Cat and would love to do a song together with her. She releases all kinds of music. I used to upload videos of covers to YouTube, and when I covered her “Say So,” I tried really hard to recreate the cute atmosphere of the original. Doja’s vocal expressions and emotional shifts influenced my own song, “Coming Back.” I also love the collaboration between Doja and Naomi Watanabe, “Kiss Me More feat. Naomi Watanabe.”  I listen to a lot of new music and keep a close eye on trends, but I’m not aiming to be a trend setter with my own music. It’s a lot more fun to make music doing what I’m good at, working with the genres I like, and creating what I feel like creating at the time.

What do you think about communicating with fans?

When I communicate with fans, I make an effort to let them know that I’m real. In my Instagram and TikTok live streams, I read a lot of the comments that are submitted in real time and give shout outs to my fans. That’s why I wanted to do today’s interview by ZOOM, not email.

What do you see as the good points of being a virtual artist?

Well, first off, I can do anything we dream up. It’s a shame that I can’t put on a show in real life, but there’s a lot of things that I’m able to do as a virtual artist that make up for that and more. I don’t have to worry about maintaining my figure, either, so I can eat as much as I want (laughs). Japanese virtual artists are so cute — the way they look, their attitudes, the way they talk, everything. I look cute too (laughs), but I don’t think my attitude is all that cute.

Being part of the entertainment industry can be really emotionally draining. What do you do to keep in a healthy headspace?

I play games. When I really get into a game, I forget about my worries, or I feel like I can take them on or they’re not such a big deal after all. Recently I’ve been playing Odin Sphere!

Let’s talk a little about your new single, “West Swing feat. E-40.” This song has a bit of a new jack swing feel, doesn’t it?

That’s right. When the whole crew was talking, the idea came up to make a new jack swing song. We’d never done a song like that before, so I thought it was a great idea. I didn’t know all that much about new jack swing before, but I listened to a lot of new jack swing when we were working on the song, and I have to say it’s great. We didn’t want to simply copy that feel, but instead we tried to give it a stylish finish. What we came up with was a really powerful track, and we wanted to have a unique rapper who had been active during the new jack swing days, so we got in touch with E-40. He listened to the track and got right back to us, saying he wanted to be a part of it. “He laid down some amazing bars. The song was mixed by Dave Way and mastered by Randy Merrill. Both are some of the most talented professionals in the world, and they created a really wonderful sound that has further driven the evolution of the APOKI sound.

There’s also a lot of buzz about this being your first song sung entirely in English.

The lyrics to my songs, starting with my debut single, “GET IT OUT,” have mostly been Korean. I also released Japanese versions of “Coming Back” and “Shut Up Kiss Me (feat. Lil Cherry).” They were a lot of fun to make, but this time we wanted to share this wonderful song with the whole world, so we went with English lyrics. I’m actually not all that good at English, but I’m good being able to repeat things I hear and pronouncing them well, and I love to do it.

The music video, with its space setting, is also wonderful.

The theme of the video is “beyond the bounds of space and time.” In the last scene, the visuals are linked to the lyrics, so make sure to check that out! The dance scenes are also a stand out. Like my previous music videos, the choreography was provided by my friends Ova and Dozu, and we worked on it together, exchanging ideas.

What’s your vision for the future?

I want to do a live show! I want to sing in front of my fans, and I also want to bring together people around the world in the metaverse and put on a show. I want to try fun, interesting things that bring people joy. Also, I want to become an artist that will keep performing for years to come. That’s why I think it’s important to release a wide range of music. I feel like it might be hard to build long-term fans if I’m always doing the same thing. I want to try my hand at all kinds of different genres and show off my cute side, my powerful side, my serious side — all kinds of different aspects of myself. I’m going to keep creating music in all kinds of new styles.

It seems like the horizons of your expressive capabilities are going to keep on expanding.

I hope so. When I’m working in new genres, there are times when I discover new and surprising aspects of my own personality. I’m discovering new things about myself. I’m positive that there’s new, untapped talent inside me that I have yet to find.

I look forward to seeing what you do next! Do you have any last words for your fans?

I read all of your messages and comments, and they really energize and support me. I’m going to keep on doing my best, and I hope I can continue to enjoy your support!

–This interview by Tomoyuki Mori first appeared on Billboard Japan

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